Sweep stick for looms



1 s. BARAM 2,917,086

SWEEP STICK FOR LOOMS Filed March 17, 1958 INVENTOR Samuel BaramATTORNEY SWEEP STICK FOR LOOMS Samuel Baram, Paterson, NJ.

Application March 17, 1958, Serial No. 721,958

4 Claims. (Cl. 139151) The present invention relates to an improvedsweep stick for looms.

A sweep stick is the power transmitting link between the picker stickand the poweractuating mechanism therefor, the sweep stick beingconnected at one end to a lug strap which embraces the picker stick andat its opposite end with the picking arm which causes the picker stickto oscillate. A stud or bolt is employed to connect the picking arm tothe sweep stick, and such stud commonly engages through an openingformed within the sweep stick near one end thereof.

Because of the jerking and pounding action of the mechanism, muchdifliculty is encountered at the connection of the picking arm stud withthe-sweep stick, and the opening provided in the sweep stick for thestud wearsrapidly and becomes greatly deformed-or elongated and thesweep stick mus-t be frequently discarded and replaced, which isexpensive and also causes the loom to be shut down.

Numerous attempts have been made in the prior art to overcome thisproblem, and it has been proposed to form the sweep stick from materialwhich is tough and wear-resistant, but this hasnot proven entirelysuccessful because the ceaseless pounding of the picking arm stud uponthe opening of the sweep stick still causes excessive wear anddeformation of such opening. It has also been proposed to provide ametal bushing or liner for the opening of the sweep stick whichreceivesthe picking arm stud, and such busings or liners are alsosubject to wear and are generally not replaceable, so that after arelatively short period of operation the sweep stick must still bereplaced. Various other arrangements have been proposed in the priorart,- but these have not solved the problem either because they do notovercome the mentioned wear problem or because their constructions aretoo complicated or costly.

In accordance with the present invention, I provide a sweep stick whichmay be the ordinary wooden sweep stick of inexpensive construction, andthe end of the sweep stick to be connected with the stud of the pickingarm is equipped with a readily replaceable inexpensive bearing part orbushing formed of material which is highly resistant to wear at theconnection of the sweep stick to the picking arm stud. I have found byactual prolonged testing of my improved sweep stick upon a loom that thereplaceable bearing part shows virtually no wear after many months ofusage, and when it ultimately becomes necessary to replace the bearingpart, it is a very simple operation to do so, and the sweep stick neednot be replaced in its entirety.

Accordingly, the primary object of the invention is to provide animproved inexpensive sweep stick for looms including a readilyreplaceable bearing part for connection with the stud of the pickingarm, and formed of material which is highly resistant to wear ordeformation.

A further object is to provide a replaceable bearing part for the sweepstick of a loom, and novel means for detach'ably securing thebear-ing'part to one end of the sweep stick in such a manner that theoverall strength and durability ofthe sweep stick is increased.

A further object is to provide a replaceable bearing part and attachingmeans therefor which may be used equally wellupon the ordinary woodensweep stick or on sweep sticks formed of various other materials knownin the prior art.

Still another object is to provide a replaceable sweep stick bearingpart of the above-mentioned character which may be employed with'equalfacilityupon the ordinary straight sweep stick or upon oifset or curvedsweepsticks used on certain looms;

Other objects and advantages of the invention willbe apparent during thecourse of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings forming. a part of this application and inwhich likenurnerals are employed-to designate like parts throughout thesame.

Figure 1 is a fra'gmentaryperspective view of the invention showing theapplication of my improved sweep stick to a loom, the sweep stick andlug strap being shown in full lines while the picker stick, picking armand associated mechanism are shown in broken lines.

Figure 2 is an enlarged side elevation of the sweep stick and associatedelements removed from the loom, partly in section.

Figure 3 is a horizontal longitudinal section taken on line 3-3 ofFigure 2.

Figure 4 isaperspective view of the replaceable sweep stick bearingpar-t removed.

Inthe drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration is shownapreferred embodiment of the invention, attention isdirected first toFigure 1, wherein the ntuneral 6 designates the loop picker stickmounted for oscillatory movement in the usualmanner. The loom pickingarm 7 is also shown in Figure 1, associated with the usual rock shaft 8and other associated mechanism of the loom. The numeral 9,. in Figure 1,designates: my improved sweep stick in its entirety, which sweep stickmay be formed of wood or any other desired material. In the presentinstance, the sweep stick 9 shown is of the curved or offset type, butit should be understood that the invention encompasses sweep sticks ofthe flat or straight type as well.

The sweep stick 9 is provided near oneend thereof with an opening 10,receiving a bolt 11 or the like, serving to connect the adjacent end ofthe sweep stick with the'usual lug strap 13 which surrounds and embracesthe picker stick 6.

The other end of the sweep stick 9 is arranged adjacent one side of thepicking arm 7 for connection with the bolt or stud 14 of such arm asshown in the drawings.

With reference to Figures 2 and 3, the main body portion 15 of the sweepstick has a flat end 16 terminating short of the stud 14 of picking arm7. A rectangular block or bearing part 17, preferably formed of steel orsome other suitable metal, is arranged in end-to-end contacting relationwith the sweep stick body portion 15, as shown, so as to form a bearingextension upon the same. The bearing part 17 is preferably of the samewidth and thickness as the sweep stick body portion 15, as indicated.The sides or faces of the bearing part 17 are flat, and the abuttingends or faces 16 and 18 of the sweep stick and bearing part are in fullcontacting relation across the width and thickness of the sweep stick sothat there is no tendency for the parts to rock or turn relative to eachother in assembly.

The bearing part 17 is provided near and inwardly of its outer end andat its transverse center with an opening 19 to receive the stud 14 ofthe picking arm.

In order to establish a rigid yet detachable connection between thesweep stick body portion 15 and the rectangular bearing part 17, Iprovide a sturdy steel band or strap 20 of U-shaped configuration whichsurrounds the outer end and opposite sides of the bearing part 17 andextends along opposite sides of the sweep stick body portion for asubstantial distance inwardly of the end 16 of such body portion. Theopposite strap portions 21 of the steel strap contact the correspondingflat sides of the bearing part 17 and sweep stick body portion, and thebight portion 22 of the strap 20 contacts the outer flat end of therectangular bearing part 17. With this construction, the strap 20 andassociated elements are adapted to rigidly secure the bearing part 17and sweep stick body portion together in assembly so that these elementscannot move relative to each other.

A pair of transverse bolts 23 engage through registering openings formedin spaced relation through the strap portions 21 of the strap 20 andthrough the sweep stick body portion, transversely thereof, as shown inthe drawlugs, and these bolts serve to rigidly secure the strap 20 andbearing part 17 to the sweep stick body portion. An additional bolt 24engages through a transverse opening 25 formed through the bearing part17 near its inner end and the bolt 24 also engages through openings inthe strap portions 21 of the strap 20 which register in assembly withthe transverse opening 25. The bolt 24 serves to further rigidly connectthe bearing part 17 to the steel strap 20, and further strengthens theassembly.

In order to remove and replace the bearing part 17 of the sweep stick,it is merely necessary to loosen the bolts 23 and remove the bolt 24,which permits the bearing part to slip out of the steel strap 20. Inactual practice, the wear-resistant bearing part 17 will last for agreat length of time, and the necessity for replacing it will arise onlyafter a very long period of use.

While the bearing part 17 is preferably formed of metal such as steel,it may also be formed of various other strong and wear-resistantmaterials, such as certain molded plastic materials, laminated wood,compressed fiber, hard rubber, laminated plastic-impregnated canvas andthe like. The bearing part may be formed of substantially any desiredmaterial adapted to constitute a good and sturdy bearing.

It is thus seen that the invention provides a sweep stick of extremelysturdy construction, and wherein the bearing part which receives thestud 14 is highly resistant to wear or deformation and is readilyreplaceable. The use of my improved sweep stick upon the loom requiresno alteration whatsoever of the conventional coacting elements of theloom with which the sweep stick 9 is associated.

It is to be understood that the form of the invention herewith shown anddescribed is to be taken as a preferred example of the same, and thatvarious changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may beresorted to, without departing from the spirit of the invention or scopeof the subjoined claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a loom, a picking arm having a stud, a picker stick to beoscillated by said picking arm, a lug strap connected with the pickerstick, and a sweep stick interconnecting the lug strap and said stud ofthe picking arm, said sweep stick including a body portion connectedwith the lug strap, a bearing part formed of Wear-resistant materialarranged in end-to-end relation with the sweep stick body portion andhaving an opening receiving said stud, a metal strap extending about theouter end and opposite sides of the bearing part and also extendingadjacent to opposite sides of said body portion, and transverse boltsinterconnecting the metal strap, sweep stick body portion and saidbearing part.

2. A sweep stick for a loom comprising a sweep stick body portion havingan end, a substantially rectangular bearing part disposed in end-to-endsubstantially abutting relationship with the sweep stick body portionand having a end to engage said end of said body portion, the bearingpart having an opening formed therethrough to receive the stud of thepicking arm of the loom, a substantially U-shaped strap extending aboutthe outer end and sides of the bearing part and overlaping thecorresponding sides of the sweep stick body portion, and a plurality ofbolts extending transversely through the sweep stick body portion andbearing part for rigidly connecting the same to the sides of saidU-shaped strap.

3. A sweep stick for a loom comprising a sweep stick body portion havingan end, a metal bearing part arranged adjacent said end of the bodyportion and constituting a replaceable extension on said body portion,said bearing part having an opening to receive the stud of the pickingarm of the loom, a substantially U-shaped metal strap extending aboutthe outer end and sides of the bearing part and adjacent thecorresponding sides of said body portion, a bolt connecting the bearingpart with the sides of said strap, and a bolt connecting said bodyportion with the sides of said strap.

4. A sweep stick for a loom comprising, a sweep stick body portionhaving a transverse end face provided with a substantial straightportion, a bearing member separate from and arranged exteriorly of saidbody portion, said bearing member having a substantially straight endface in contact with the end face of said body portion so that thebearing member cannot turn with relation to said body portion when saidfaces are held in contacting relation, said bearing member having anopening to rotatably receive a stub of the picking arm of the loom,strap portions engaging the side faces of said body portion and the sidefaces of said bearing member, a bolt passing through said strap portionsand said body portion and serving to clamp the strap portions againstthe side faces of the body portion, and a second bolt separate from thefirst bolt and passing through the strap portions and the bearing memberand serving to clamp the strap portions to the side faces of the bearingmember, the second bolt being removable while the first bolt is inposition I upon said strap portions, the arrangement being such that thebearing member may be removed from between said strap portions andanother bearing member substituted therefor and held in place by thesecond bolt while said strap portions are held upon said body portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,241,829 Dayman Oct. 2, 1917 2,445,745 Moe July 20, 1948 2,717,006Dardani Sept. 6, 1955

